WHEREAS the American Sociological Association (ASA) comprises sociologists and kindred professionals who study, among other things, sex and gender, sexualities, families, children, religion, culture, and systems of inequality and their effects, and

WHEREAS the ASA is dedicated to advancing sociology as a scientific discipline and profession serving the public good, and

WHEREAS a constitutional amendment defining marriage as between a man and a woman intentionally discriminates against lesbians and gay men as well as their children and other dependents by denying access to the protections, benefits, and

responsibilities extended automatically to married couples, and

WHEREAS we believe that the official justification for the proposed constitutional amendment is based on prejudice rather than empirical research, and

WHEREAS sociological research has repeatedly shown that systems of inequality are detrimental to the public good,

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that the American Sociological Association strongly opposes the proposed constitutional amendment defining marriage as between a man and a woman.